Newspaper Page Text
GIBSON AND APPLING.
Mr. Watson will speak at Gibson,
October 3, and at Appling Octo
ber 4.
CLEI ELAND’S FORCE BILL.
Exeuctive Mansion-, )
Washington, d. c , Oct ]BBB> J-
Hon. A. H. Garland, Attorney General-
Dear Sir: Lou are hereby re
quested to take general charge and
direction of the execution 'of the
statutes of the United States touch
ing the appointments of supervisors
of elections, and special deputy mar
shals, and the performance of their
duties, and their compensation, so
far as these subjects are by the con
stitution and laws under the super
a ision and control of the executive
branch of the government.
Yours truly,
Signed, Grover Cleveland.
Department of Justice, )
Washington, D. C., 1888. f
Wils °n, United States
Marshal. Nashville, Tenn.:
Sir: In pursuance of a letter of
the sth instant, from the President,
directing the Attorney-General to
take charge of the “appointment of
special DEPUTY marshals, the per
formance of their duties and their
compensation, together with the com
pensation of supervisors,” at the
Congressional election in November
next, your attention is directed to
the provisions of titles 24 and 26,
chapter 7, title 70, of the revised
statutes. Under section 2,022 and
2,024, revised statutes, you have
power to keep the peace, protect
supervisors, preserve order, prevent
frauds and enforce the law in towns
of twenty thousand inhabitants and
upwards.
You should make yourself familiar
with the statutes referred to and see
that they are understood by your
deputies, who should be discreet
men, impressed with the importance
of an honest franchise.
The manner of discharging these
duties by yourself and your deputies
is largely left to your discretion. In
matters involving questions of law
you are directed to consult the At
torney of the United States for your
district for needed information and
advice. It is assumed that the du
ties can be performed without in
fringing upon the rights of any citi
zen in a manner that shall be firm
and at the same time free from an
unnecessary display of authority.
It is not expected that supervisors
and deputy marshals will receive
compensation for more than live
days’ service, and they should be so
informed. Within this time ail can
be done, it is thought, that ought to
be. You need vigilant men, who
ARE CONSCIENTIOUS WORKERS, AND
NO OTHERS.
Before payment each deputy and
supervisor will present to you his
commission, oath, and badge of office,
with an affidavit that he is the per
son to whom the commission was
issued, that he performed the days’
service as charged, which will be
annexed by you to the pay roll as
vouchers for its adjustment. The
same facts should also be known to
you through other means.
Upon payment being completed
these accounts should be approved
by the court and forwarded to this
department for action under the
executive order mentioned.
Very respectfully,
A. H. Garland,
Attorney-General.
These instructions were carried
out in the fashionable and Democratic
city of Nashville. The People in
Georgia may be forced to depend
upon the same law, yet in force.
This is the natural result of such
elections as were held in Alabama
and Arkansas. Let the people and
the politicians remember that Cleve
land’s Attorney-General enforced a
federal election law, and it is not
treason to have Harrison do the
same.
Atlanta is Not a Clean City.
As the laboring class have no or
gan of their own in Atlanta and as it
is simply impossible for a laboring
m m to get an article of any kind
inserted in either of the Democratic
papers published here, I sent this
for publication.
Atlanta is not a clean city. Dead
rats, dead cits,’ and decaying rub
bish of all kinds can be found in
alleys everywhere. Some of the
water closets are positive pest holes,
and some of the cellars reek with
tilth and noxous vapors.
Then tliv city water is not fit to
drink. It is the nastiest water to be
found in the South. One good drink
of it is enough to give any one the
cholera. Are we always to be cursed
with such filthy water which is
not even lit for cooking purposes?
Whenever the authorities give us
pure water; when they clean up all
the alleys and scatter a few thous
and bushels of lime in the alleys, the
cellars and in the gutters ot all the
public streets, then it will be time
for the papers to say that this is a
thoroughly clean city.
The business streets are clean, but
the byways want looking after. And
besides, how can we have good health
here with such foul drinking -water?
A Laboring Man.
There -were about one-hundred
voters out to hear Messrs. Moses and
Adamson at Villa Rica Saturday the
17th inst. Os this number about
thirty were People’s party men.
The people are growing tired of the
lame old story.
PEOPLE’S PARTY PAPER, ATLANTA, GEORGIA, FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 1892.
AT AUGUSTA.
[continued from third page.]
is my home. Let me say to you!
Let me say. to you, my friends!- I
would not achieve success by any
unfair methods. (More howls of
rage, and the beholder could read
malice in a thousand eyes.) Let me
tell you, my friends. (Continued
howling, chiefly confined to the well
dressed element, particularly on the
stage.) Let me say to you, my
friends ! Let me tell you, you may
try me too far ! You may drive me
a good deal further than you think!
You may drive me a good deal
further than I would like to go with
out extraordinary provocation.
(Faces around the speaker began to
take on a serious aspect at these
ominous words, but those away as
much as ten yards could not hear the
words, and the uproar, for a moment,
increased, if anything.) I may as
well be plain with my own friends,
and I repeat, with emphasis, that
you may drive me a good deal fur
ther than you think. This is my
home, and Mr. Watson bears the
hononored name of guest. I say,
once for all, I insist that you give
him a patient and respectful hearing.
(Perhaps the occupants of the
stage and the surrounding benQhes
where Mr. Black’s friends were
thickest, howled themselves hoarse ;
perchance they became ashamed of
their own ungentlemanly behavior;
it may be that they saw a covert
threat to wash his hands of such vile
scum, but, whatever was the cause,
several made an honest effort to re
store order, and they partially suc
ceeded in three quarters of an hour
after Mr. Black had finished.)
Mr. Watson. If you all be quiet
a moment I will give you a black
board exercise. (Laughter.) I will
come over to Mr. Black’s side of the
stage, because I want to be nearest
to Mr. Black’s friends. I am per
fectly certain that a Georgian,
speaking in Georgia for his party,
for his honor, which is dearer than
life, will never speak in vain, wheth
er he be for Black or not. Now,
this is a business matter that con
cerns you ill, and I want you al!to
hear it, if you will take your minds
for a moment off the questions con
cerning the campaign. It is a mat
ter that every man alike,
white and black.
(At this point the nice young men
who smake cigarettes and stand
around the street corners, set up an
unearthly yell, and pandemonium
reigned supreme for full three
minutes more.)
Mr. Watson. Boys, you may as
well be quiet. You may as well take
your medicine, for I am going to be
heard, as sure as you live. I have
not got to leave here before the fast
train in the morning, and I am go
ing to stay here in my tracks and be
heard. Do you understand that?
(Great applause mingled with idiotic
yawping.)
Mr. Black. Listen boys, listen.
lam going to stay with him until
morning when the fast train goes.
We have agreed at least on one
thing, and that is that he shall be
heard. Now boys, in the name of
good order, in the name of right and
justice, let us be quiet, and let Mr.
Watson proceed.
Mr. Watson. Ladies and fellow
citizens: I will now come to a mat
ter of some interest to everybody
who likes to understand how Gov
ernmental affairs are managed; how
your money is spent; how the pres
ent campaign is being conducted,
and whether you are fairly treated
by your public officials.
A voice. What about the Corbin
bank, Tom? (Stamping and yawp
ing.)
Mr. Watson. Don’t you forget
for one moment that I will come to
personal matters directly. But, fel
low citizens, before doing that I
want to discuss this circular. Hold
ing it aloft. It is a cireular put out
by the Democratic campaign commit
tee.
It is illustrated by the picture of
a very respectable looking colored
man.
A voice. Hurrah for Black. Skin
’em Mr. Black.
Mr. Watson. Now, that is un
fortunate for you, if you think you
can afford to identify this colored
man with Mr. Black. Now listen
and see where y’ou are putting your
candidate. (Cheering.) Now, I
want the colored people especially
to listen to this. (Reads.)
Congressman Tom Watson defeats a
a worthy colored man's claim in Con
gress. Read what tho Rev. Chas. L.
Bradwell says: “As a constituent of
Hon. L. Livingston, member of Con
gress from the Fifth District, I make the
following statement.
Mr. Livingston had in charge for me
a claim against the government, which
was regarded as just and equitable by
the Senators and members of Congress
from Georgia.”
A voice. Can’t you read, Tom?
(Loud guffarrs.)
Mr. V atson. Now listen. I want
to say this, if there is anything that
hurts a Democrat it is a little chunk
of truth. But hurt as it may, you
must hear this circular or get out.
(Reading continued.)
(Some men on the stage at this
point, began a new system of annoy
ance. Canes and chairs were
brought into requisition to drown
the speaker's voice, and the most
infernal din was kept up for about
one minute.)
Mr. Watson (addressing himself'to
the colored people). You see that
they are afraid to let me explain this
to you people. You may as well lis
ten, for I am going to make this
speech to-night. You must hear,
and the poorest white man, the poor
est colored man in this assemblage
to-night is going to have an oppor
tunity. (Cheering and jeering, com
bined with the stage blackguards
keeping up a general conversation.)
You do yourselves great injustice,
fellow-citizens, when you deny your
congressman, for I am your congress
man, the same right that is accorded
to the humblest citizen.
Voices. ’Rah for Black! You
haint my congressman.
The Chairman. Fellow-citizens,
under the rules governing the debate
Mr. Watson is entitled to an hour and
a half, and I am going to try to let
him have it. The speaking will not
proceed until we have order.
A voice. It is the niggers. ’Rah
for Black.
I hardly think it is our colored
citizens.
A colored man on the sides. ’Deed,
boss, it hain’t us.
Mr. Black. My friends, I make
one more appeal to you. If you
knew, oh, if you but knew how you
are wounding me, no friend of mine
would proceed in this disorderly
manner. I ask my friends here who
do not desire to hear Mr. Watson, to
retire from the building. You are
doing me an injustice, you are doing
your cause an injustice, you are do
ing an injustice to yourselves.
A voice (from a man who was con
spicuous all through in unseemly con
duct, and thumping the stage with a
chair, putting two hands to his mouth
like a trumpet). Major, it is Wat
son’s nigger friends. He’s afraid to
meet you, and got them up to keep
him from speaking, to have an ex
cuse to quit.
Other voices: You know that’s a
lie; we are going to vote for him
any how.
Mr. Watson. My fellow-citizens.
I cannot entertain the thought with
any seriousness .that any considerable
body of citizens of Richmond county
w r ould want to deny me a hearing
after Mr. Black has had his hour.
That would not be fair; that would
not be right. As a matter of course
I cannot be heard unless there is
more quiet than now. I am forced
to believe that a large majority came
here to hear the debate. I must be
lieve that nearly every Democrat |
here is willing to hear me in reply. (
Now, notwithstanding your conduct, |
I am in the utmost good humor. |
Major Black has attacked my record, j
and while he has done so he has i
planted every blow above the belt,'’
and why I should not be heard in |
my own behalf is beyond my com
prehension unless it is that you fear
the result. There is no reason why,
people’s passions should carry them
away on this occasion. Let me say
this to you, we have had three de
bates in the country and we were
both listened to with respect. Now,
you do not want it to go abroad that
you would not hear me after my
friends listened to Major Black.
You do not want your newspapers to
send it forth to the world that you
were afraid to risk your candidate
answered by me after he had his say.
That report must go out if this does
not cease, for everyone must see that
there is a determined effort to keep
me from being heard.
(At this point a gentleman ad
vanced to the front of the stage
with a beautiful basket of flowers
for Mr. Watson, and it acted on the
unruly very much like a red rag on a
bull. Umbrellas were raised and
swung, to the great danger of those
in proximity, and the stage resounded
with the thumping of chairs.)
Mr. Watson. I tell you, the more
of that you do, the more of these
flowers I am going to get. (Laughter.)
[Note —Another scene of confusion
followed, lasting several minutes and
your i eporter had an opportunity to
examine the basket of flowers. A
gentleman whispered in mv ear:
“That is from a 4ady member of Mr.
Black’s church.” I examined the
card, and read: “With compliments
of Mrs. W. C. Chapman, to Hon. Tom
Watson.”]
Mr. Watson. Not only that, but
if you keep this up many warm-heart
ed right thinking people will lose re
spect for you and your party.
[A wreath of roses was forwarded
to the stage, at this point, and
another scene of . confusion ensued.]
Mr. Watson. If you do not keep
order I will have every flower in
Richmond County.
A voice. That is all you will have.
Mr. W atson. If there is anything
recognized as Jeffersonian Demo
cracy, it is free speech and a free
press. You ceriainly are not giving
me free speech to-night.
[A scene of disorder equal to the
worst broke out at this point. Mr.
Watson folded his arms and silently
surveyed the scene, a calm smile of
contempt overspreading his features.
Said a gentleman to my left, in re
ply to some one who observed that
Watson’s friends were making as
much noise as any others: “No; they
are Black’s friends trying to howl
him down. I ain’t a Watson man
myself but this is an outrage; I be
lieve in fair play. lam opposed to
this kind of outrage.” “You had
better” said the other, “go and join
Watson.” “I am not sure but I will,”
said he, “if this keeps üb.” “By
G—d, you can if you want to,” said
the other.
HON. PAT WALSH ASHAMED.
At this point Hon. Pat Walsh got
the ear of the audience, and succeed
ed in’doing what Mr. Black failed to
do, namely: to get a respectful hear
ing. He said:
“I tell you, men of Augusta, that
this is not to your credit. There is
a stranger here before you waiting
for a patient hearing, and you should
be silent and hear him for his cause.
If you are not silent, it will be a rt
flection upon the hospitality and the
liberality of the people of this city.
Mr. Watson is here by. reason of a
fair and honorable agreement on the
part of the representative of the
Democratic Party, and the represent
ative of the Third Party. Now my
fellow citizens, if Mr. Watson is not
heard to-night, it will be used,
although it ought not to be used, to
the discredit of our standard bearer,
and all because •the people of Augusta
will not give to Mr. Watson a silent
and a respectful hearing.
Voices. That is right! That is
right! That is right.
Mr. Walsh. I appeal to you fellow
Democrats, if you love your party, if
you love your standard bearer, if
you love fair play, if you love justice,
to give Mr. Watson a calm, fair and
patient hearing.” •
Voices. We will! That’s right.
Go on Mr. Watson.
Mr. W alsh. Now I appeal, also,
to Mr. M atson’s friends to keep quiet
and hear him, just as I have appealed
to the Democrats to hear him. And
I say to you all that it will be a dis
grace to the city of Augusta if Mr.
Watson goes from this hall to-night
without a patient hearing.
Mr. Watson. (With indignation
welling in his throat.) The idea
tnat any one has to ask a hearing for
me in the city of Augusta. There is
not a brick in your streets that I
have not trod with my weary feet
when I was a poor and homeless bov,
asking for work. There is no street
in your city that has not seen my
mother, a Richmond County girl,
blood of your blood, bone of your
bone, flesh of your flesh, as she hon
estly and industriously made her liv
ing here with her needle in the.years
of her youth; and the idea of any
body having to ask for a hearing for
me—asking that I should have° fair
play here in Richmond County, arous
es my just indignation. (Loud and
long continued applause. The hood
lums seem, for the time being, to be
shamed into silence.) I ask no favors;
except those favors which honorable
foes always are willing to give. I
ask no mercy; except that mercy, if
you please, which always grants a
fair tight among honorable brave
men, and not the cowardly attempt
of many men to stifle the voice of
one man. For some time I am yet
the Congressman of the tenth Con
gressional District. For some time I
am yet your representative, and your
servant. In the past, I have faced
your enemies; fought your battles,
with nothing, to sustain me except a
consciousness of rectitude.
Manymorbes. True! True! True!
Godpuppt- Tom, we are going to
' They
|; I gerproice. You will never
gejf tha*- * (ummy, boy.
•is poi. theon. Now, my friend,
you- and rioing at a conclusion. We
are Lg-the arrive ».t truth. Do you
want the truth? or do you
want blind? < Do not make
up yquon. igfbefore you go into the
jury b Ise, you cannot give a fair
verdiaover. • you?
Nxd I wi\)w citizens, I am going
to <?dMo vthese issues fairly, fully,
hidroppj. thing. It matters little to
motion of tr I go away from her®
wiu ajour’ approval, so far as your
votes are concerned. It is manifestly
of more importance to me that I go
away with your respect. If you see
that I acted, from my standpoint,
conscientously, then acknowledge it
like men. Here are farmers and me
chanics, business men and laboring
men, rich men and poor men; here
are ladies, little children, boys and
girls; country people and town peo
ple; do you want to hear these things?
Cries of. Yes, yes, yes.
Mr. Watson. Now r , I wanted to
take your minds off these exciting
topics until I could catch the car of
your understanding. I saw that tiiis
.was an excitable crowd where per
sonal collisions might occur, and no
true leader, or true man, wants to see
the lives of his fellow citizens put in
jeapardy. My God! I do not want
any man’s lite put in danger, much
less to see the cause I represent
stained with any man’s blood.
Now, if you listen, you may go
away differing with me, but there is
not a man who will not, if he gives
his mind unshackled by prejudice,
see that I acted fairly, fearlessly and
honestly, and did it, too, at the risk
of my political future. Why over
here at Crawfordsville, the other day,
Mr. Black said that if I had stayed
within the ranks of the Democratic
party that my election was sure; that
nobody would dare to contest my
claims in this district. Don’t you
.suppose that I knew that as well as
Mr. Black? That I knew my interests
as well as he; that when I stepped
outside the ranks, I knew those inter
ests had to be combated for at the
risk of my future ? Don’t you know
that no man would have trod the
fiery furnace of slander, and hatred,
and malice, without for a moment
having a trembling lip, or a qualing
eye, without a consciousness of right?
Do you suppose I could have done
it without being sustained with the
deepest conviction of right ? Let no
rpan think it or impute to me motives
dishonorable! I tell you to-night
that the highest test of endurance
and fortitude is for a man to cast
away his party and fight his prin
ciples irrespective of party.
[Some of the parties on the stage
made a faint effort to precipitate
another scene of confusion, but were
frowned dowm by the few immediately
around Mr. Black. They contented
themselves bv keeping up a senseless
jabbering, to the disgust of every
gentleman of what party -soever.]
Mr. Watson. The great trouble
with my friend, Mr. Black, in these
debates, is that he does not read the
records. He flung into your teeth,
laboring men of Augusta, that our
platform offers you nothing, forgetful
of the fact that Powderly and your
representatives met the farmers of
the country at St. Louis, and swore
breast to breast and face to face that
these would tight for the principles ir
repective of party. (Loud applause
and cheers called for both gentle
men.) Ah, I know quite well what
was in his mind. The great trouble,
in the past, with labor movements
had been that there had been a divi
sion between the laborers and pro
ducers of the country, and the lab
orers and producers of the city.
(Hissing from the dude element, and
angry cries from the honest Workers.)
And our leaders knew quite well that
there could be no permanent party of
success unless the laborer and pro
ducer could be brought to see that
their interests were the same; and
after a great deal of preparation in St.
Louis, you all know that those
three other planks were inserted.
The three planks that Mr. Black
most strenuously repudiates, and they
were always insisted on by the
Knights of Labor. (Great applause.)
And one of those planks which was
in your platform, and which Mr.
Black so strongly condemns, was
that the government should own and
operate the railroads. Now, do you
not think that it was perfectly right
and legitimate that I should point
out that he was alligned with rail
roads ?
Voices. Yes, certainly; and snarls
of: Naw ! Naw ! Rats, rats !
Mr. Watson. Ido not mean by
that to detract from Mr. Black’s per
sonal integrity, but I do mean to say
that Mr. Black, as attorney for the
Central Railroad, is not m a position
to give these questions the calm can
did attention, with your interests in
view as I am.
Cries of That’s so, Tom; hurrah
for Tom Watson.
Mr. Watson*. He says that my
friend, Joseph B. Cumming, was the
man that introduced the resolution
putting me in nomination. Did you
pay attention tojthat? He read: “There
being no other candidate.” Did you
notice that ?
A voice. That is right. (Cheers.)
Mr. Watson. He said: “There
being no other candidate.” No man
in this assembly honors Joseph B.
Cumming more than I do. Nothing
that I say is to be construed into per
sonal disrespect to him any more than
to my friend Mr. Black, but you all
know that I owe nothing on the face
of the earth to Major Cumming in
my congressional race. You all
know that I owe nothing to Major
Black. You all know that I owe
nothing to the Augusta politicians
generally, in my political race.
Voices. That is right, Tommie,
my boy; we all know that. Bless
your soul, we put you there.
Mr. Watson. Yes; it was the
farmers of this country; it was the
artisans of this country; it was the
laborers of this country that put me
into Congress. My friend Mr. Biack
said, in his speech at Crawfordsville,
that if I had remained in the demo
cratic party there would be no man
in the tenth district that would dare
raise his head to contest my claim.
A voice. ’ ’Rah for Black. You’ll
have to stay at home, Tommie.
(Jeering and leering, defiance and
retort from Mr. Watson’s friends.)
Mr. Watson. Why, you are get
ting touchous again? Yes, they try
to side-track me, but I took my com
mission from the people (addressing
himself to the audience on the right
and left); I took my commission from
you, and I have kept the faith. I
took my commision from the people,
and I appeal to the people.
Cries of: Good, good.
Mr. Watson. I appealed from the
court house cliques to the farmers,
to the laborers, to the artisans of the
villages, the towns, the cities and
the country at large. I appealed
from the rings, the political and nev r
paper rings of Atlanta and Augusta,
to tl\e great heart of the people, and
took their banner in my hand, and in
season and out of season, to the
neglect of my own business, fought
their battles, and I appeal to you
now, and not to the political ring
sters of Atlanta or the rowdies of
Augusta. (Tremendous applause.)
Fellow citizens, if I had simply and
solely stated that I would take the
democratic banner, regardless of
principle, and stick to the party
through thick and thin;-if I had dis
carded. principle and adhered to that
policy, I would be at home to-night
a private citizen, and Major Barnes
would have been the representative
in Congress, because the Augusta
ring does not love Mr. Black much
more than it loves me.
A voice. That is a center shot.
Hurrah for Watson.
Mr. Watson. Yes, you all know
that that is the truth. There is not
a man back of him to-night, pushing
him forward to defeat, who would
not have kept him back two years
ago, and glory in the fact that he could
do it.
Voices. Right. Right. Right you
are. Oh, we all know that, Tom.
Mr. Watson. When I was running
for Congress
Several voices (on the stage).
Traitor, traitor, traitor. What about
the Corbin Bank, Tommie? What
about the Corbin Bank? Sold out;
sold out; sold out. ’Rah for Black.
’Rah for Black.
[Dante’s Inferno, in its most hid
eous aspect, 'was duplicated here. At
least two hundred men rose upon the
stage, picked up their chairs and
thumped and thumped and thumped
for at least five minutes. Malice
seemed to gleam in hundreds of eyes,
while the speaker stood with a smile
surveying the scene and calmly view-
ing the infuriated mob of howling
demons. His closing words were
drowned and he evidently thought
your reporter had them, for he con
tinued.]
Mr. Watson. When he was run
ning for Congress against the Hon.
Seaborn Reese, I was his supporter as
under the same circumstances I
would be [the confusion increas-
ed and your reporter could not catch
the concluding words*] When he was
running for the Senate against the
Hon. A. H. Colquitt I was his sup
porter, and would be the same again.
But what support did the Augusta
ring give him ?
Voices.-Right; right; right. We
know all about that Tommie. [The
third laugh.]
Mr. Watson. Where did you hold
the indignation meeting, boys ?
Voices. Ha! Ha! Ha! You’re
getting there Tommie. Good bye,
Jimmie.
Mr. Watson. Listen boys; listen
now. I stood, by him in that fight,
and there is not a word in that nom
inating speech I cannot stand by to
night.
A voice. We rememeer the ban
ner, Mr. Watson. We will get the
banner.
Another voice. And the flowers.
Mr. Watson. Yes and the flowers;
and before I get throngh carrying
that banner, the sunlight of God’s
victory will carry it
[The confusion commenced anew,
and the speaker’s voice wag again
drowned. It was impossible to get
the conclusion of his sentence, al
though your reporter was within two
feet of the speaker.]
Mr. Watson. He speaks to you
about my going into collusion with
Jerry Simpson and other great lead
ers of the People’s party in the North
and West, and asks, who are these
men fighting to-day ?
Cries of right, right, right, and rats,
rats, rats ! ’Rah for Black! answered
by defiant shouts from Mr. Watson’s
followers.
Mr. Watson. No, it is not rats; it
is the truth, boys, and the Demo
crats are hopelessly lost when they
cannot see the difference between
old fashioned truth and new fashioned
“Rats.” (Great applause.) Who took
Kansas from the ranks of the Repub
lican party? Can you tell me tnat?
A voice, Rats.
Mr. Watson. Yes, if that is a
sample of your Democratic intelli
gence it is no Wonder your leaders
are crying out “Where am I at?”
Why, it was Jerry Simpson and his
friends and other men of his ilk who
made inroads on the Republican
stronghold, and that is the reason
that so many districts are now rep
resented by representatives of the
People’s Party.
Cries of, Rats; rats ; rats. Tell ua
about the Corbin bank ?
Mr. Watson. Oh, don’t get tired .
so quick. Whenever you hit a Demo
crat between the eyes with the truth
he has no more sense than to cry
out “rats; rats.” Who put John J.
Ingalls out of the Senate ? He was
kept there for years. Why ? Simply
because he was so good at skinning a
rebel. (Great laughter and ap.
plause.) It was this same much-de
spised People’s Party that hurled
him out of his seat in the Senate.
Voices. Rats, Tommie; rats. Go
home, Tommie ; go home, Tommie ;
go to see Mrs. Lease. Bah; bah;
bah.
Mr. Watson. Don’t you know bud
die (addressing one of the rats) that
the Democrats of Kansas adopted
the People’s Party platform, and to
day are givingjerry Simpson their en
dorsement for Congress ? Now why
don’t you say “rats ; rats ?”
Voices. Yes, rats; rats; rats.
Mr. Watson. (Turning to Mr. "
Black) your candidate will not say
rats, rats. He knows better. At
one of the grandest conventions ever
held in Kansas—the State conven
tion—the People’s Party put in
nomination for congressman at large,
Major Harris, a one-legged Confed
erate soldier who had been a Demo
crat all his life, and was from the
South.
Voices. Good-bye, rats; farewell,
rats.
Mr. Watson,. Now, let us go to
something else.. I want to call at
tention to one fact, and that is that
while the Democrats cursed my book
until the air was blue with profanity;
while they cursed until the blasphemy
took on all the hues of the rainbow,
there is not a single statement they
complained of that was not the
truth. In these very items which
were read out by Mr. Black, what
did he gain? Did he question the
truth of the assertion ? No, he simply
questioned the propriety of making
it. He did not question the truth,
but said that it was bad taste in me
to say that some of the Democratic
leaders were rascals.
Cries of Backslider! Backslider j
[Murmurs of indignation from some
and shame from others.]
Mr. Watson. My friends, this
does not disturb me in the least. I
have characterized these men before.
All honorable men know how fairly
I characterized them. I am an
swered with “traitor,” and accusa
tions of treachery. Now, here in
the presence of these ladies and
honorable men, I submit that if any
man accuses me of treachery, that
Major Black is the man to bring the
charge. Let Mr. Black put the in
dictment in his own language. He
says that I denounced Calvin Brice
the very man who was the chairman '
of the Democratic national executive
committee before I was elected. I'es.
And before I was elected I went
down into the Market hall of this
very city and denounced him in the
same terms, if not in the very same
5